11. Philadelphia 76ers: PG Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
Moving up to get Noel earlier really freed them up to not have to try and figure who of all the big guys they preferred, of who of the poo poo platter of wings they wanted. They were able to take a premium position to replace Holiday. I’m a Syracuse fan, and had some issues with MCW. I don’t think he’s the truest of PGs. I watched him all year have issues with the more fundamental PG duties, of bringing the ball up against pressure mostly. But perhaps with the improved spacing of the NBA, that will be something he’ll have less issue with. His vision is elite. And he’ll get to go through the fire this year on a bad team. I know there’s some concern of duplication with Evan Turner, but I could see them taking advantage of each other, playing off of who’s defending who. And long term his vision and open court game could fit perfectly with Noel running. Also, there’s a chance Turner isn’t long here.

12. Oklahoma City Thunder: C Steven Adams, Pittsburgh
Ugh … I really didn’t like this pick. I didn’t like Adams through this whole process. I had reservations all through the mock I wrote. But I did see him moving up through the process. People say he has got so little experience, he can grow exponentially, but he also may have missed his window, and will never have the instincts to take advantage of his tools, something that a team that has Hasheem Thabeet on it’s roster you’d think would understand. Combined with this pick coming from the Harden trade, it’s just harder to swallow. They could’ve kept Harden, made a run this past year, then probably moved Harden for the first pick if they still didn’t want to pay him, probably could’ve moved up to one this year and replaced him with McLemore or Oladipo had they wanted to. Instead they jumped the gun, got knocked out in the second round, and have Steven Adams and Jeremy Lamb. Awesome.

13. Boston Celtics (via Dallas Mavericks): C Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga
I like Olynyk’s skill set for his size. Good shooter. Good Passer. Good cutter. Obviously has some rebounding issues, and defensive rotations are limited due to his quickness concerns, but I’ll put it this way, this is a hell of a lot better big prospect than last year’s Fab Melo.
I do wonder why they’d give up two second rounders next year to move up two spots for this. If by chance he got taken, there’s plenty more options among bigs (I liked Gorgui Deng best anyway). And now you’re blowing it up anyway. Those second rounders could’ve been used as sweeteners to try and move up next year when they’ll have two firsts. And cheap second round talent is a great way to fill out a young roster, which is where they’re heading. They and the Sixers are in full blow up mode.

14. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Utah Jazz): SF Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA
The first of the two firsts Minnie got for giving up Trey Burke, a guy they couldn’t use anyway, and frankly they probably would’ve been considering Muhammad up there anyway. They needed wing scoring and shooting. A guy to play off of Love and Rubio’s passing and general creativity. Personally I’dve preferred staying put and going McCullom, but this is OK. I really didn’t care for Muhammad’s game, but he can certainly score. I feel he’s a little too much ball stopper for what they do.

15. Milwaukee Bucks: SF Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greece
The youngest player in the draft, the guy has tremendous potential. I don’t mind this pick at all. The crop of bigs wasn’t gonna do much more than the weird crop of long bigs they’ve already got. And they may as well see if they’re gonna keep Jennings anyhow. They’re in blow up mode too as far as I’m concerned.

16. Atlanta Hawks (via Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics): C Lucas Nogueira, Brazil
17. Atlanta Hawks: PG Dennis Schroeder, Germany
Two picks in a row is always cool. But I still don’t understand why they traded with Dallas to jump ahead of … themselves? Weird. Did Dallas threaten to take Nogeira/Schroeder and they were so smitten with him they just couldn’t allow it, even though there were no shortage of other bigs to look at? If Dallas is willing to move down, how in love with Nogeira/Schroeder could they really be?
Either way, I love this draft. I really liked both these guys, especially Schroeder. I’d said in my mock I’da seriously considered Schroeder up in the top ten. I feel like he’s gonna really be a tempo setting PG, who can pressure on the other end, and he’s a better shooter than most others like him. And Nogeira is so similar to Noel, the fact that he was considered that much lower amazed me. I love the potential of these two with Horton, and could even see them working if they bought back Josh Smith.

18. Dallas Mavericks (via Atlanta Hawks): PG Shane Larkin, Miami (Fla.)
Rumor had the Mavs were looking to stash someone to free up cap space to chase FAs, but they let two premium foreigners go in front of them moving back. And they could’ve gone Karasev who went next, but they must’ve really liked Larkin. I don’t blame them, I liked him too. He’s small, but makes up for it with elite measurable athleticism, and he’s a better shooter than all the other PG prospects up to this point. At worst he becomes a top level back up.

19. Cleveland Cavaliers: SF Sergey Karasev, Russia
Karasev I totally fell for, along with Schroeder, at the Hoops Summit game, then started digging into him, and liked him more and more. Very creative with the ball as a passer and ball handler, and while he lacks premium athleticism, his shot allows him to get defenders close enough to him to get by them. He’ll have some defensive issues, but he’s got a strong body, and won’t be a complete liability. I would’ve liked this pick more paired with Porter, where he and Bennett to me both have some perimeter defensive issues.

20. Chicago Bulls: SG Tony Snell, New Mexico
I love the Bulls commitment. They know who they are. And they’re gonna do it. Another premium defensive swingman who can shoot it some. Sure it’d be nice if he could put it on the floor a little better, but they’re not gonna let him anyway. Thibs isn’t the let’s get better type, he’s more, let’s not expose our weaknesses. That will once again put more of a load on Rose on offense than one may like, but they’re continuing to surround him with shooters who can run and cut and fill lanes, and who will wreck havoc on the other end. Snell will play. I thought they were gonna go Jamaal Franklin. But there were a ton of options like this. Snell may have the most upside.